ABSTRACT
The major symptom and consequence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is daytime sleepiness, owing to the impact of OSA on the central nervous system (CNS) via sleep fragmentation. Further, the observed elevation in cardiovascular morbidity in OSA is due, at least in part, to its impact on the autonomic nervous system (ANS). These behavioral and medical pathological symptoms are indirect manifestations of OSA’s impact on the nervous system and are reviewed elsewhere in this book (see Chapter 1, “neurocognitive effects”; see Chapters 17 and 18, “cardiac and cardiovascular effects”; see Chapter 22, “sleepiness”). This chapter reviews the evidence for more direct measurable impacts of OSA on CNS and ANS anatomy and function, by looking at studies of brain morphology and brain function using various imaging methodologies, and ANS function using a variety of different measures.
